Outdoorsmen Adventures.com

Reprinted from the Sioux City Journal

SELKIRK, Manitoba — It’s a magical place, this 30-mile stretch of the Red River from the Lockport Dam north to Lake Winnipeg.

From late September through ice-out, the Red hosts untold numbers of huge walleyes, fish which have spent the spring and summer feeding in the inland sea known as Lake Winnipeg.

October draws thousands of anglers hoping to cash in on the action at a place where an 8-pounder is “just another fish” and nobody gets excited until a 12 pounder comes to the net.

Then the river freezes over and everyone goes home.

But, the big fish are still there.

Stu McKay, longtime owner of Cats on the Red Resort just below the dam at Lockport, called me in late December.

“You better get up here,” he said. “Some awfully nice fish are coming through the ice.”

A couple of photos of 30-inchers sealed the deal, but it would be mid January before my schedule would fit. Also the prospect of photographing a snowy owl and northern hawk owls was added incentive.

So, we made the 550 mile trip north for three full days of fishing and photography.

“It’s underutilized in a lot of respects,” Stu remarked as we were preparing our gear for the day. “If this fishery, both the Red and Lake Winnipeg, were in the state of Minnesota, for instance, there would be armies of people out there. Right now it is mostly locals.”

And, indeed, it was. A large group of permanent ice shacks were set up right outside Stu’s resort. “Mostly, they are catching saugers,” he said.

As we drove along the river to the north, scattered groups of fish houses clustered in three or four more areas.

We drove out onto the river at the “End of Main” where Netley Creek empties into the Red. Then we ventured a few miles farther north and set up on a flat.

Stu’s head guide, Holly Chow, was with us and set up her own portable shelter while Stu cranked up his StrikeMaster and drilled the holes and set up his insulated 2-person Thermal Clam. A Mr. Heater connected to a 5-gallon propane tank was placed in each house on a board insulated on the bottom with foam.

We dropped Vexilar transducers down separate holes and were soon fishing in living room temperatures.

Stu’s friend Andre Desrosiers, Selkirk, a Natural Resources officer who had a few days off, was fishing alongside of us.

We hadn’t been there 30 minutes when he yelled “Trophy.”

And it was. Amazingly 15 minutes later he landed another. These were nine and 10-pound fish.

We caught walleyes and sauger, too. But none approached trophy size that morning.

Stu and I left about 11 a.m., leaving everything set up for the evening bite to go looking for owls. We were gone about 15 minutes when Holly called and reported she had just lost a fish she estimated at 13 or 14 pounds right out of my hole.

Geez.

Later she called to say she had landed two 26-inchers and a 28.

Fran and Stu and I, meanwhile had photographed three northern hawk owls.

Day two found us back on the ice. The morning bite was good but the trophies were eluding us. Fran caught two sauger and five walleyes. Holly caught the best fish, a 26-inch walleye. Stu and I added some eaters. That afternoon we got some great snowy owl photos.

Day three was trophy day for Fran. She began by losing a big fish which turned right at the hole and tore loose. Holly and Fran got a good look at it. Thirteen pounds, Holly estimated.

A short while later, Fran set the hook again. This time the fish came up through the hole and she laid the 29 1/2-incher on the ice.

“If people are willing to put in their time, chances are very good they will get a trophy here,” Stu says. “How special was that today. A personal best for Fran, her first trophy walleye in Canada and her first time ice fishing.”

And that’s what is so magical about the Red.

Ten years ago Fran recorded more personal bests on the Red.

Fishing with Stu, we landed 48 channel catfish ranging from 12 pounds to 28 pounds in eight hours.

Where else can you do that. Huge channel catfish all spring and summer (if there’s good current) and huge walleyes all fall and winter.

“The month of December is probably the key month on the River,” Stu says. “Usually by this time of year we are fishing on Lake Winnipeg, but everything seems later this year.”

Three young guys checked in with us the last day. They had driven to the mouth of the Red and then ventured out onto Lake Winnipeg with four wheelers. They reported only three fish. But, those three totaled over 35 pounds.

This area is, indeed, the land where dreams of big fish come true nearly every day.